10 Times You Thought Wrestlers Were Finished (& Were DEAD WRONG!)
2. Sting
Night Of Champions 2015 was a dark night for the Stinger. There, on a 'B' level WWE pay-per-view, he suffered a nasty neck injury whilst working Seth Rollins in the main event. That'd be Sting's last match for almost six long years, and most in the wrestling community figured he'd never work as a top level again.
Excited yelps from old WCW hardcores were tempered when Sting inked a deal with AEW. Surely, Tony Khan would deploy the legend as an on-screen authority figure at best? Instead, Khan carefully protected the icon by placing him in a cinematic-style tag with Darby Allin vs. Team Taz at Revolution 2021. It proved to be a superb decision.
The Stinger rolled back the years, but the pressure was off because his segment was pre-taped. So, if anything did go wrong, he could take a timeout and reset without worrying about a live crowd. That breathed fresh confidence into his bones and meant Sting felt comfortable enough to keep wrestling on specially-selected occasions before retiring in early-2024.
His AEW run should be cherished. It was definitely better than anything WWE did with the guy!